‘The Killing’ Season 3 May Be On Another Network

As is now the typical response by studios behind the various television series on the receiving end of the proverbial network axe, the makers of The Killing are reportedly interested in staving off the show’s death by shopping it around to numerous other television networks.

Last week, AMC made the announcement that it would not be seeking a third season of the once critically acclaimed murder mystery, after the second season failed to garner sufficient enough ratings to warrant the series’ continuation.

Of course, it likely won’t be long before the name Netflix pops up as a potential contender for the series, as the streaming content provider is now seemingly obliged to feign some interest in every serialized drama that has been given its walking papers in the past few years. It’s worth noting however, that even though Netflix has been briefly associated with the resurrections of recently canceled programs like Terra Nova and The River, the only show it’s actually had enough interest in is Arrested Development – a series last seen on television in 2006.

Besides wondering what network a dark, character-driven drama such as The Killing might be able to call home, selling the show may be too much of a problem for any legitimate interest to arise. As fans will note, executive producer Vena Sud and AMC underwent a maelstrom of criticism after season 1 ended with the main character, Det. Sarah Linden (Mireille Enos) being served up yet another red herring, instead of the answer to the mystery nearly every viewer believed they had been promised. Following that debacle – which resulted in AMC head of original programming Joel Stillerman issuing a statement about how the network and the show may have better managed fans’ expectations – The Killing never quite seemed to recover.

That kind of baggage almost certainly led to the poor ratings performance of The Killing in season 2. The April premiere saw its ratings down a whopping 33 percent from the year before, with just 1.8 million viewers tuning in. Unfortunately for the series, those numbers continued to decline until the season finale, which garnered only 1.4 million viewers. Additionally, with the series wrapping up its central mystery of who killed Rosie Larsen, AMC took the declining numbers as a sign the series had reached its end.

Despite all that, the studio that produces The Killing still believes in the series enough to begin shopping it around. In a statement released shortly after AMC’s announcement that it was canceling the series, Fox Television Studios had this to say:

“Fox Television Studios is extremely proud of The Killing, the extraordinary writing staff and crew, and what we believe is one of the best casts on television. We will proceed to try to find another home for the show.”

If The Killing does find a new home, chances are, it will not resemble the program it once was – and that is likely a good thing. With the Larsen murder solved, the series would be forced to essentially recast nearly every character, with the exception of Det. Linden and her partner Det. Stephen Holder (Joel Kinnaman). Kinnaman addressed the need for a fresh start to the series soon after the second season wrapped up by saying:

“I feel like Linden and Holder [are] just [getting] started. I imagine that there would be a new case, and that Linden’s obsessive nature is not going to keep her away from police work for too long. It’s like the first season [of a show], where it [would] be original material and not based on the Danish [series] anymore.”

As it stands, many of the deviations made by The Killing from its source material – the Danish series Forbrydelsen – have been some of the most criticized aspects of the show. If The Killing were to continue, perhaps what it would need is a more direct translation of the original series.

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Screen Rant will keep you updated on any progress made to land The Killing at another network.

I just heared of the killing and thought if its being brought back after being cancelled it must be good. After the 3rd episode hubby and I were hooked! The people casted for the roles was brilliant, very real feeling show that to me was like way before computers were popular and people still read books, it gave me the feeling I get from reading a good novel, which has been like 15 years since I had done that. This show really makes you feel involved with the characters as if your were there aswell, kinda weird way to explain it. I have watched all episodes and still amazed by it. This to me altough its a dark show, is the best I have watched since six feet under. HUGE FAN! looking forward to season 3:)

I am so disappointed that this show was cancelled. I love the characters and the suspense of the show. I and many other people are so tired of all the reality shows and the same cop shows and doctor shows. Enough already! AMC is making a big mistake cancelling this show. I love AMC – they have the best shows on TV: Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Walking Dead, among others. I love the movies even if they are repeats (Halloween, my all time favorite show. I watch AMC all the time. Please, please re-consider and bring back ‘The Killing’ with the original characters of course give it another chance. You took off a really good show: Rubicon. Why? Do you know how many people wait to see these shows weekly. Please never ever take off the Walking Dead. Keep up the great work because AMC Matters Here.

I LOVE this show, and hope that they do continue with Linden and Holder going forward with NEW cases….it is probably the best show on TV…cannot believe that the “ratings” are so low…..CSI (all of them) Law and Order (all of THEM) and the other totally BAD “cop” and mystery-based shows (Mob Doctor,Revenge,Rizzoli and Isles to name a few) cannot BEGIN TO COMPARE to this show! PLEASE come back!

I really hope a network picks up the show. I love it. I actually drove my husband crazy because I couldnt wait for the next season. It does have good actors and I know the writers will continue to come up with great story lines. I dont get how you wouldnt like it. Im sick of all the reality shows. We need good dramas.

THIS IS WHY I WILL NOT WATCH ANOTHER SERIES ON AMC. THE KILLING WAS A GOOD SERIES, IT WAS DIFFERENT FROM OTHER CRIME SHOWS FOR A CHANGE. THE ACTORS WERE GREAT, PLAIN AND SIMPLE. SAME WITH RUBICON THEY CANCEELED THAT TOO. WHAT ABOUT HELL ON WHEELS IS THAT COMING BACK?

Please, please,bring this back, there is absolutely nothing else worth watching anymore. This show was great, and yes what the heck happened to ‘Rubicon’? another great show. Is the trend that any show with good stories and actors must be cancelled? We need shows that actually make you think…especially Rubicon. with all the other non-sensicle garbage on give something worth our time a chance….

For those fans who loved this series please watch the Danish original it is utterly brilliant and the third season has just been shown. Complex plot, mystery, brilliant acting, superb casting and superb direction are just some of the things it has going for it. It is in Danish which means subtitles, but be open minded and you soon forget about the subs and will be hooked. You wont regret watching it and it will be better than any remake.

Got season 1 at the library. I am wanting to see season 2 before seson 3 starts..Hoping the library gets it soon..Then I will be ready for season 3 to begin..For a show that was unadvertised anywhere on tv I am surprised at the following..

My husband and I have been waiting for the return of the Killing.
We enjoyed it immensely and wish for it to return.
It needs more advertising as to date, time and channel.
We wish it was on one of the national tv stations.
I understand you will be returning in May. Please
advise the time, date and channel. I hope it is not just
on Netflix and on a regular channel..

First off it its is the best crime drama ever made and i truly mean that! it was so hard to wait 7 days to see the nexted show, also i couldn’t believe it when i heard they canceled it, i thought amcd lost there minds!!!! lol!!!! but then i found out its was coming back in may, it made my day bc i was having a very bad one up to that point. well all i can say is i can’t wait for may!!!!

Season 2 was so horrifically bad. The story line disappeared while we see the characters go from event to event emotionally bonding with whomever is present… and Stan punching stuff. It was so bad that I couldn’t make it past episode 6. I no longer care who killed that girl, I only wish they’d killed everyone else. And the spoiler is that she was killed over hearing some campaign plans? JESUS! What a waste of time!

I loved, loved loved this show!! The only reason ratings were down is because alot of the cable companies don’t carry AMC as a basic cable choice anymore, only on the upgraded. Please don’t discontinue this show. It’s the only time I actually looked forward to watching TV in over 20 yrs. The charactors, the music, the storyline etc. is high class and invigerating! Vicki